Entertainment

The upcoming live action reboot revival of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has a new cast member. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the half-shelled heroes' big screen return has cast comedic star, Will Arnett.

While the identity of Arnett's character is momentarily being kept a secret, the report shoots down the obvious choice for prominent male characters by indicating that he will NOT play the sporting-goods-swinging vigilante of the TMNT mythos, Casey Jones. Regardless, Arnett joins a cast of motion-captured Turtles who will accompany Megan Fox, who presumably takes the lead role as signature damsel, April O'Neil.

At this point, Arnett's role is anyone's guess. With all four Turtles already cast in Leonardo (Pete Ploszek), Raphael (Alan Ritchson), Michelangelo (Noel Fisher), and Donatello (Jeremy Howard), the other notable vacancies for known male characters (human or mutant) are for the foursome's sensei and mentor in the human rat, Splinter, the villain who fancies razor-sharp fashion, The Shredder, and sinister scientist, Baxter Stockman. None of those seem to be a realistic fit for the Up All Night and Arrested Development star, Arnett, which might indicate that the role is completely original to this film's storyline. (Which will apparently depict the Turtles as aliens of some kind.)

The role will nevertheless put Arnett in the midst of what may possibly be his biggest film, yet with this major $125 million project produced by the auteur of explosions, Michael Bay and directed by Jonathan Liebesman.

Ninja Turtles (as the reboot project is currently known) attempts grandiose sleight-of-hand tricks while playing Europe's "The Final Countdown" when it hits theaters on June 6, 2014.

Next year's return of the Transformers film franchise may be the next film to make content adjustments to court production partnerships in China. It is being reported that Transformers 4 (title not yet confirmed) will work with China-based movie channel, Jiaflix Enterprises in an agreement that will open access to the quickly-expanding film market in the population-brimming nation. -- Not only that, but the robot rampage romp will consequently also do some filming in the red nation, as well.

The news comes just days after the announcement that Iron Man 3, in partnering with Chinese company DMG Entertainment, will actually go so far as to release a different cut of the film for Chinese audiences approved by the notoriously political-censorship-happy State containing new scenes and actors exclusive to their release. While no details have been revealed on what, if anything, will be altered for Transformers 4, it does seem that similar concessions would be made for the Chinese release, considering that Jiaflix Enterprises is an arm of the Administration of Radio Film and Television, controlled by the Chinese government.

At the moment, all that is known is that director, Michael Bay will be aided by the company towards pursuits like:

"Selection of filming sites within China, theatrical promotion, and possible post-production activities in China as well as casting of Chinese actors and actresses in the film."

With Mark Wahlberg stepping in as the main protagonist, along with a set of younger supporting cast members in Jack Reynor and Nicola Peltz, it will not only be interesting to see how the the film adjusts to the post-Shia LaBeouf era, but how the franchise known just as much for its unadulterated product placement as it is for giant robots will manifest with its new Chinese mandate.

The Avengers 2 may still be over two years away, but the rabidly-anticipated sequel to the $1.5 billion grossing mega-movie now has its reservation set for Pinewood-Shepperton in the UK to begin shooting in just under a year in early 2014.

While the first film did most of its shooting throughout various locations in the U.S. from New Mexico, New York, and Pennsylvania, that tradition will not continue with the sequel. According to a report from ScreenDaily, it seems that this sequel will have our returning assembled Avengers doing a good portion of their shoot at Shepperton Studios. (Where recent productions like Jack Ryan, Maleficent, and The Muppets have shot.) With the shoot of one of the biggest sequels of all time laying down roots in their area, the production's impending arrival will no doubt be seen as an economic boon for locals on so many levels.

So, could we possibly glean any bit of information from this news? At this point, nothing even close to a hint has been revealed about the film's plot. However, the first film's exterior-heavy shooting throughout the U.S. was certainly reflective plot-wise of the film we ultimately got. Thus, if The Avengers 2 is looking to confine most of its shoot to a studio in England (presumably in front of a series of green screens), one might be able to conjecture that much of the film's events will take Marvel's dream team to more exotic...I daresay "unearthly" locations.

While Marvel Studios' "Phase Two" series of connected films kicks-off with Iron Man 3 next month, we know that events will ultimately go "cosmic," based on the Thanos cameo at the end of The Avengers, coupled with next year's big-screen debut of The Guardians of the Galaxy. With The Avengers 2 being the planed denouement of the Phase Two era, one would think that it would also be the culmination of this continued evolution in Marvel's Movieverse, rather than just being a sequel. (Yeah, I read into all of that from "they're shooting in a studio in England.")

The Avengers 2 will have you telling it to shut-up and take your money when it hits theaters on May 1, 2015. In the meantime, check below for a new video of Marvel Studios head, Kevin Feige talking about the direction of Phase Two. (Even if it's just to promote a box-set of the Phase One movies.)

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug may still be over 8 months away. However, after the release of the recent (Gandalf-focused) teaser footage only accessible to those who purchased the first film, director, Peter Jackson has posted a brief Q&A session about the upcoming second part of his Middle Earth prequel trilogy and even unveils some behind-the-scenes goodness and cool concept art.

Besides answering questions from The Lord of the Rings alum, Billy Boyd (Pippin), fielding nerdy/creepy queries from Stephen Colbert (who will cameo in one of the films) before boldly exposing the comedy host's cost-cutting measures, Jackson actually reveals quite a bit concerning how he will approach this middle chapter. While treating us to footage of yet-to-be seen characters, Bard (Luke Evans), Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly), and a returning Orlando Bloom as Legolas, Jackson drops hints about the way the narrative will greatly expand from the somewhat linear (and lengthy) The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Indeed, just as the middle chapter of his renown Rings trilogy, The Two Towers made a radical change in tone and introduced a handful of primary, point-of-view characters, Jackson's words seem to imply that we should expect a similar move with this follow-up.

While An Unexpected Journey impressed many, it also managed to divide audiences over a number of issues. Notably among them, was its bloated nature and the slow-paced way in which things unfolded. However, some may recall that the first entry into the (generally beloved) Rings trilogy, The Fellowship of the Ring also had its moments of sloppy, sometimes drawn-out exposition. It was not until we got to the sequels, did the primary characters really shine. That may very well be case again with The Hobbit films.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug stages a violent group intervention with a gold-hoarding dragon at theaters on December 13.

Indeed, with genre biggies like Iron Man 3, Star Trek Into Darkness, and The Wolverine looming in the coming summer, this follow-up to the 2010 Greek mythology-inspired coming-of-age adventure, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (yeah, that whole thing was the title) may have sneaked-up on the majority of otherwise closely-following moviegoers. However, despite a somewhat modest performance at the box-office, the $226.5 million worldwide return on a $95 million investment must have been enough to compel 21st Century Fox studio to consider this sequel project (that no one anticipated) as a somewhat safe bet.

The trailer depicts exciting and immediately-accessible family-friendly adventure. However, based on what we're seeing, this film doesn't seem to hearken back too much to the first entry. In fact, I would venture to guess that this sequel is made in such a way where seeing the first film will not be necessary. Such a thing would be telling of Lightning Thief's somewhat forgettable status. (Even if it was a rare film featuring Sean Bean where the actor's character did NOT die. -- Of course, he had to play Zeus to pull that off.)

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters picks catchier titles to tackle Titans at theaters on August 16. Check out the trailer below!

It is being reported that after the successful weekend of its sophomore effort that the G.I. Joe film franchise will continue soldiering on with a third film.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation certainly did make the most of this past Easter weekend earning $132 million worldwide, outdoing the global opening of the 2009 first film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra by 35%. In the U.S., it would also deliver the second-best performance of that holiday weekend with $41.2 million (only behind the $61.2 million in 2010's Clash of the Titans). Overall, Retaliation looks to be well on track to outdo the $303 million global take of its predecessor.

Whether it was the continually-growing box-office clout of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, the presence of Bruce Willis, Adrianne Palicki's Lady Jaye looking ravishing in that red dress, or just the strength of the franchise itself, the movie managed to find an audience. It's especially impressive considering how fans and insiders had already written the film off as a disaster just waiting to happen. It not only managed to overcome the stigma of a year-long delay for a questionable 3D conversion, but it did so while going into the fray with a director completely new to the action/comic-book/fanboy-centric genre of films in Jon Chu. Indeed, there were many gambles on this film that ultimately paid off in a huge way.

No details have been given about the "whens" or the "whats" (other than the fact it will be in 3D), but there is certainly a wealth of material in the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero classic comic book, cartoon, and toy canon from which to draw for a third film. While this film series does not exactly adhere closely to the classics, it could potentially use classic concepts such as: A vengeance-seeking Destro forming his own faction in the Iron Grenadiers. The unruly and destructive biker gang, The Dreadnoks. The eccentrically-evil Crimson Twins, Tomax and Xamot, who like to finish each others' sentences. Or, maybe even Cobra Emperor, Serpentor; a tyrant cloned from a milkshake of DNA taken from the worst despots in the world's history. -- The possibilities are endless.

Iron Man 3 is getting ready to hit theaters worldwide in the coming months. However, it is being reported that moviegoers in the People's Republic of China will be getting a different version of the movie than everyone else. -- And get this, while the potential for ethically-questionable state-approved censorship is likely, the Chinese version will actually contain bonus footage!

During the genesis of the armored Avenger's third solo outing, an agreement between parties, Disney and Marvel Studios was made with Chinese company, DMG Entertainment to co-distribute the film in their country. The benefits to that relationship, besides new sponsors and promotional access to the largest single national population in the world was some aid towards including "Chinese elements" in the film; a cause that was also helped by some late-addition filming in capital, Beijing last December. Indeed, it does appear that this alternate version of the film will attempt on some level to cater to the (State-approved) sensibilities of Chinese audiences. (I shudder to think what they'll do with Don Cheadle's Iron Patriot.)

However, the changes go beyond just scenery. The Chinese edit of the film will not only feature scenes that are not available in the other worldwide releases, but will also feature ACTORS exclusive to this version, as well. Most notably among the additions, is a role for Chinese starlet, Fin Fang Foom...err, Michael Bisping...sorry, Fan Bingbing. Interestingly enough, the gorgeous actress already has her Marvel Comics dance card punched over at Fox with a role in next year's X-Men: Days of Future Past.

It's certainly not the first time that "adjustments" were made on the part of Hollywood to cater to the demands of the ever-growing Chinese film market. The most notable recent example of this was the remake of Red Dawn, whose depiction of the Chinese as enemy invaders ignited controversy, forcing a long post-production effort to recontextualize the antagonists into the North Koreans. Also, (and this is just pure speculation,) the fact that Ben Kingsley's role of Iron Man 3 villain, The Mandarin, who is traditionally of Chinese ethnicity was altered to be more ambiguous may not be such a coincidence, after all.

Iron Man 3 (OUR patriotic, baseball, bald eagles, and apple pie version of it, anyway) hits theaters on May 3. At this point, no date has been announced for the altered Chinese release.

We've known for quite some time that this summer's Superman reboot, Man of Steel would focus on star, Henry Cavill's antagonistic tanglings with Michael Shannon's escaped Kryptonian war criminal, General Zod. However, after a choice revelation from actor, Mackenzie Gray, a rumor has now been ignited concerning the character considered Superman's most iconic rival, Lex Luthor.

Fans of the long-running Superman TV series, Smallville may recall that Gray played a cloned version of Supes' follicularly-challenged foe in a 2010 episode of the show. (Whose real version was played by fan fave, Michael Rosenbaum.) It was a brief, but memorable appearance, which seemed especially relevant to a recent interview in which Gray confirms that he has a role in the upcoming Man of Steel movie; a fact that he would also reiterate that he had permission to reveal as long as he omitted any details.

However, a small tidbit of those details may have emerged from the sleuths over at Aint It Cool News, whose anonymous insider close to the film disclosed that the still-unnamed role by Gray will be "substantial." Thus, Gray, who already possess a passing connection to Lex Luthor, has become the center of the latest round of rumors speculating that the avaricious, evil industrialist will, in fact, be in the film. If true, then Gray would be joining Gene Hackman and Kevin Spacey in the prestigious club of actors who have played Luthor on the big screen.

Check out the interview in which Gray confirms his Man of Steel role just below!

In a move that may not be the biggest of surprises, the Tomb Raider film franchise will be the next to receive the reboot treatment. According to Variety, MGM studio has acquired the film rights to adapt a new rendition with the alluring archeologist, Lara Croft, who was last portrayed on the big screen by Angelina Jolie in two films in 2001 and 2003 that collectively grossed $432 million worldwide.

Gary Barber, head of the recently-resurgent MGM studio who are still counting the money from recent James Bond mega-hit, Skyfall and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, made the Croftastic announcement and also revealed that producer, Graham King would be bringing his production company, GK Films on board to develop the project.

According to Barber:

“Graham is one of the premier producers in this industry and I am delighted to be working with him on this exciting franchise. We look forward to developing more projects together in the future.”

With the once-stale Tomb Raider video game series getting a much-needed makeover with a younger, survivalist-centric version of Lara in the recent reboot game, it seemed inevitable that Hollywood would come back and strike while the brown-eyed beauty's iron was once again hot. As surreal as it may seem, we are one whole decade removed from the 2003 sequel, Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life, the second and last film in which Angelina Jolie donned that tank-top and those oh-so-tight short-shorts to play the character. Certainly, there have been reboot efforts that hit with much closer proximity to their predecessors. **cough**The Amazing Spider-Man***cough**

At the moment, no timetables were revealed for the film's release. However, given that the first entry in the relaunched video game franchise has only just hit, one might conclude that a heralded new film may seek the benefit of the still-new video game's sequel as the proper tent-pole for its arrival. So, it may be a few years before this hits theaters.

It appears that next year's sequel, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes will be featuring some monkey love. (And you won't even have to wait patiently and creepily at the zoo to see it.) It is being reported that actress, Judy Greer will don a motion capture suit to play Cornelia, the amorous ape love interest of Andy Serkis' returning chimp chieftain, Caesar.

Greer actually brings a resume of TV and film appearances that is quite vast. Known for her roles in Three Kings, The Descendants, an array of romcoms, and her run on Arrested Development, she is currently a regular on Two and a Half Men and is also the voice of Cheryl Tunt on Archer. She now takes this role of Cornelia, which was likely inspired by the ape character, Dr. Cornelius, famously played by Roddy McDowall in the original Planet of the Apes film. Monkey couple, Cornelia and Caesar (Caenelia?) will run parallel to the lead human couple comprised of Keri Russell and Jason Clarke.

Cornelia actually appeared briefly in the previous film, 2011's Rise of the Planet of the Apes played by dancer, Devyn Dalton. Now, with the role expanded, the experience for Greer will actually fulfill a dream...well, that of her husband, who she muses is "obsessed" with Planet of the Apes and is a collector of various Apes-related nicknacks. She further reveals in the report that the obsession even manifested in the form of a chimp husband and wife cake topper at their wedding.

Greer joins the ever-growing cast of this primate prequel-sequel (minus previous stars, James Franco and Freida Pinto) that features the great Gary Oldman, Terry Notary, Kodi Smit-McPhee, as well as the aforementioned Jason Clarke, Keri Russell, and Andy Serkis.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes gets busy in the ape apocalypse when it hits theaters on May 23, 2014.

A new restricted international trailer for Kick-Ass 2 has arrived that shifts focus from Aaron Taylor-Johnson's titular green-spandex-sporter to Chloë Grace Moretz's Hit-Girl as the fledgling femme-fatale gives the old college try...of adjusting to life in high school.

Otherwise known as Mindy Macready, she was raised from birth by her vigilante father, Damon (played by Nicolas Cage in the first film) to follow in his criminal-killing footsteps. Mindy's brief attempt to live a normal life, going to school and trying out for the cheerleading squad seems to leave her flat on the count of it not including activities allowing her reap the blood of the wicked with extreme prejudice. (Which is way more exciting than glee club.) If this school happens to have any "mean girls," then it's only a matter of time before one of them makes the horrific mistake of telling her that a black cape makes her look fat and may soon be adding "reconstructive plastic surgery" to their lists of activities.

The film's overall plot, which was covered sufficiently in the debut trailer, is also revisited, showing Kick-Ass and Hit-Girl's recruitment into a group of journeyman vigilantes lead by Jim Carrey's Colonel Stars and Stripes, as well as Christopher Mintz-Plasse's revenge-seeking Chris D'Amico recruiting an evil team of his own, while becoming the world's first legitimate supervillain called The Motherf**ker.

Kick-Ass 2 redefines the meaning of "school spirit" with indiscriminately violent shots to the genitals of both genders when it hits theaters on August 16. Check out the new trailer (which, again, is restricted and full of naughty words), accompanied by a new Hit-Girl character poster. It's all just below!

The upcoming fourth film in the Transformers franchise now has a confirmed female lead. Director, Michael Bay has confirmed via his Twitter, that actress, Nicola Peltz has landed a coveted lead spot in the robot rampage romp.

Peltz, who appeared in the notorious The Last Airbender, can be currently seen on the new A&E Psycho prequel TV series, Bates Motel as the romantic interest of the young man destined to don drag and deal death in a shower. She will now follow a sacred tradition upheld by Megan Fox and Rosie Huntington-Whitely of being the film's resident "babe" amongst Bay's monolithic metamorphic anthropomorphs. (Which is a lot more fun to say than simply "Transformers.") It is speculated that she will play the daughter of Mark Wahlberg's main character, while playing romantically opposite to a character from newcomer, Jack Reynor.

The news probably delivered a satisfying moment for news site, Twitch, who back in December actually reported that Peltz, along with Aussie actor, Brenton Thwaites would be the fourquel's featured young couple, only to be debunked. It turns out there was some veracity to their report. (Well 50% of it, anyway.) Now, the wild young coed who's trying to tame the creepy young Norman Bates will tangle with a different kind of loose cannon: GIANT ROBOTS WHO BLOW S**T UP.

At the moment, practically nothing is known about the film's plot (despite a recent widely-publicized false report), however, with the clock ticking closer towards the film's projected release date, you can bet those details won't be left a mystery for too long.

Transformers 4 (title not yet confirmed) uses Burger King-sponsored Decepticons to squash the Bates Motel in slow-motion when it hits theaters on June 27, 2014.

It's here, folks! The Wolverine has finally released a full-length proper trailer...and it seems to be a merciless montage of Hugh Jackman's Wolverine getting his ass kicked.

My fellow fans, our long national nightmare is over. Indeed, the time for teasers, tweasers, and cheesers have passed and the adamantium-aligned assbeater's excursion to The Land of the Rising Sun comes into comprehensible view. Our pal, Logan has clearly been drowning sorrows over lost loves in Canadian taverns while getting into fights with drunken rabble dressed as lumberjacks, when the mysterious she-ninja, Yukio (Rila Fukushima) appears. The fearsome femme forces him to turn the other cheek (which at the moment had chunks of some idiot's glass stuck in it) and whisks the mournful mutant over to Japan where a man whose life Logan saved many years ago during The War has a proposition he may be interested in taking. While there, an old flame of his, Mariko (Tao Okamoto) reaches out for help with a dilemma containing connections to his own issues that may not be coincidental.

While we've seen Hugh Jackman's Wolverine in four previous films as the grizzled claw-swinging super-mutant who decimates with reckless abandon, this trailer seems to make clear that he'll be playing the role of the proverbial pin cushion quite a bit in this film. Sure, Logan's holding his own, but the numbers in this battle are clearly lopsided as Logan, with the occasional help of Yukio, tangles with hoards of ninjas, Yakuza-esque gun-toting gangsters, The Silver Samurai (Will Yun Lee), the vengeful Viper (Svetlana Khodchenkova), and his most formidable foe yet, A HIGH SPEED TRAIN.

The Wolverine tries for some reason to uninstall one of the most awesome physical specs of all time when it hits theaters on July 26. Check out the debut trailer in both international and domestic forms below...NOW!

The newly-announced remake of Escape from New York may already have its candidates for main character, Snake Plissken down to two. According to a report from The New York Daily News, either Tom Hardy or Jason Statham could stand to inherit the cycloptic, badass mantel of the role made famous in the 1981 original film by Kurt Russell.

Hardy, who had recent breakout turns in Inception, Warrior, and proved he could be somewhat funny in action-romcom, This Means War, would give a career-defining performance as Bane in last summer's The Dark Knight Rises, making him a household name. While a go as the new Snake Plissken would undoubtedly build upon an already-impressive resume, Hardy also happens to be gearing up for the release of his starring role in the reinvention of another 1980's post-apocalyptic franchise in next year's Mad Max: Fury Road. Thus, for him, he may be wary of potential remake overkill.

In Statham, we have an actor who, with a signature cockney accent, has carved out quite a niche as the headliner for a steady stream of action flicks over the years, notably with The Transporter series, The Expendables series, and in the upcoming Fast & Furious 6. He's certainly one of the more capable action protagonists, but his landing the role may depend on whether he can emulate the kind of grizzled, smart-alecky, "why the hell am I even here?" demeanor that could be neccessary for the new Snake to be, well, Snake.

At the moment, nothing is confirmed, as the NYDN report was based off unnamed sources. In fact, the names of Gerard Butler and Jeremy Renner were previously in the mix at one point in time, and for all we know, may still be in the running. It's a fact that led to comments from the duo who put together classics like the original Escape from New York, The Thing, and Big Trouble in Little China: John Carpenter and Kurt Russell. In an interview published today with Empire, the duo reunited for a reflection on the aforementioned great trilogy of 80's genre films and also made comments on the search for the new Snake that might prove germane to this report, given that two Brits were named as candidates for the role.

The Wolverine continues its week of revelations and reapings with a second brief teaser trailer leading up to tomorrow's grand unveiling of the film's full debut trailer. Plus, the film has unloaded its second and third impressive motion posters depicting Hugh Jackman's Wolverine in full torrential irateness.

The new video comes just a day after director, James Mangold unveiled an epic 6 second montage of footage from the film, which even revealed an X-Men alum cameo by Famke Janssen's Jean Grey. However, it seems that in the promotional melee, even Mangold himself got a bit confused about the rollout strategy for the various teasers for the trailer. It turns out the formal teaser for the trailer would come by way of a new 20 second video today, released exclusive to MTV.

Unlike the video released yesterday, this one is more thematically focused, as we see Wolverine sustaining a gunshot that to anyone else, would be fatal. The future for this cheapshot artist dressed as a monk, is certainly bleak, as he also seems to make off with Wolverine's damsel, Mariko. (Tao Okamoto.) The wound just serves to demonstrate what Wolverine seems to lament at this point in his life: The virtual immortality afforded to him by his mutant healing factor. Indeed, it's been hinted throughout the last year that this film would explore the depths of Wolverine's soul like never before as his fear of losing the ones he loves comes into focus when the former love of his life, Mariko calls him to Japan for help.

Yet, despite all the monstrous mutant pathos in this teaser for the trailer, it looks like Rila Fukushima's role as mysterious she-ninja, Yukio may very well have stolen the show with her badassness and cute-ish freakiness. Regardless, the aperitif has now been consumed and the main course of a trailer is set to hit our dinner tables tomorrow.

The Wolverine brushes-off gutshots with an angry sneer when it hits theaters on July 26. Check out the new teaser and the motion posters below!